Salafists flee Sweden after embezzling millions of public funds and transferring them to Salafist groups abroad.
An extensive and lengthy journalistic investigation published by the Expressen newspaper sparked controversy. Expressen The Swedish newspaper, whose report was picked up by several Danish and Western media outlets, sparked widespread controversy in Sweden and abroad after it revealed a network of extremists linked to the Salafist movement who ran a number of schools and kindergartens fully funded by the Friskolor free school system. It emerged that several individuals overseeing these institutions had been classified as national security threats by the Swedish Security Service (Säkerhetspolisen) since 2019. Despite this, they continued to run the schools and receive government funding for years before disappearing from the country, leaving behind massive tax debts amounting to millions of kronor. The newspaper published the names and photographs of the fugitive members of the network.
fugitive network members
At the forefront of this network is Abo Raad, a former imam in Gävle, one of the most prominent individuals whom Säkerhetspolisen (the Swedish Security Service) considered a direct threat to national security. Despite security vetting, he managed to continue his activities within the private school system before leaving Sweden for Turkey and then to an undisclosed destination as the investigations began.
The file also mentions Abdel Nasser El Nadi, a former imam who underwent similar security investigations and played a role in the intellectual and administrative guidance of the network that ran several educational institutions. Information indicates that he, too, fled to Turkey to avoid potential prosecution after signs of financial corruption began to emerge.
These two individuals are not the only ones involved. The newspaper revealed that other members of the inner circle or from the same families run companies that own schools and kindergartens in various cities. Subsequent reports indicate that one of these individuals fled to Egypt to avoid financial prosecution after it became clear that the authorities had begun tracking the movement of funds and transfers made through these institutions.
Where did they send the money?
The network operates a number of schools and kindergartens that benefited from the government funding system for private schools (Friskolor). According to investigations, these institutions managed to obtain more than one billion Swedish kronor over the years while concealing illegal financial practices, including inflating student numbers to secure more funding, transferring funds to associations linked to the Salafist movement, and smuggling money out of Sweden.
Between 2015 and 2018, these schools experienced significant expansion in their activities and student enrollment, leading to increased government funding. In 2019, despite Abu Raad and several of his associates being designated as national security threats, they were not subjected to effective monitoring after their release from detention, allowing them to continue managing their educational institutions.
The beginning of suspicion regarding suspicious transfers
Between 2020 and 2022, signs began to emerge of missing funds and unexplained transfers to associations and private properties. As suspicions mounted, the investigation widened, revealing in 2023 and 2024 that a number of officials from these institutions had left Sweden entirely, some for Turkey and others for Egypt, while others disappeared without a trace.
With the publication of Expressen's full investigation, the Swedish parliament, the Riksdagen, was forced to open a broad debate about the loopholes that allowed individuals with security clearances to run state-funded schools, receive sums exceeding one billion kronor, and then flee the country without being held accountable. Authorities are now facing difficulties in collecting the tax debts left behind by this network, as most of those involved have left Sweden.
